The Rwanda Correctional Services (RCS) is looking for funds to build its new headquarters at the former Remera Prison, which was known as Kimironko prison in Gasabo District. The facility was vacated in April 2017 and part of it has since been turned into temporary quarters for RCS staff, while the biggest part remains idle. The institution has been renting offices for years and is now waiting for approval of the budget from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning before construction works begin. Senior Superintendent of Prisons (SSP) Pelly Uwera Gakwaya, the RCS Spokesperson told The New Times that the institution has submitted the proposed budget for the construction of the facility at the four hectare-land and is pending approval. “We are planning to build our headquarters in the area but it is something that requires not just the construction permit from the City of Kigali but the budget as well. The construction works will begin as soon as the budget is approved,” Uwera said in an interview. Uwera said the budget planned for the construction of the facility is already known but can’t be made official to the public “as long as we haven’t received the funds yet but we are ready to start the construction even right now as long as the budget is available and approved”. The City of Kigali’s executive committee recently visited the place and has requested RCS to design a construction project proposal that meets the City’s master plan requirements. Officials said the area is not yet developed the way it has to be and recommended RCS to make a plan and submit the project to the City of Kigali so they can get construction permit as per the City’s master plan requirements. According to Marie-Solange Muhirwa, the City’s Chief of Urban Planning, there are conditions that RCS should meet before the permit to start construction activities is delivered. “The plot will be developed as per the Kigali City Masterplan requirement. However, the property owner (RCS) is consulting related stakeholders to establish an appropriate project for the area,” Muhirwa told The New Times on Monday. RCS currently rents offices previously occupied by Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB), in Samuduha, Kicukiro District.
